The Color Run is the first colour race of its kind and was inspired by several awesome events, including Disney’s World of Color, Colour Parties, Mud Runs, and festivals throughout the world such as Holi. We wanted to create a less stressful and untimed running environment that is more about health and happiness! We hope that The Color Run can act as a catalyst to inspire continual healthy living.

Oh my goodness, NO. There are plenty of other great 5k runs our there to test speed and performance. We’re all about a colour crazy day out with friends and family. You can run, walk, jog, skip, dance or cartwheel it if you wish!

‘The Happiest 5k On The Planet’ is not a timed event. Even Mr. Farah would take his time out there to maximise the colourful fun! We suggest self-timing for anyone desiring a finish time.

There are no age limits, if they can cover running, jogging, walking or strolling the 5kms of the course, they can absolutely do The Color Run! Anyone under 14 years old needs to be accompanied by an adult.

No, we are a commercial fun run event, but we do work with charities.

For the safety of our runners and animal friends, we do not allow animals at any of our races.

You can pick up your kit at the Pre-Pickup store that opens in the week leading up to your event. Opening hours will be advertised closer to the event.

We conduct thorough testing to ensure the safety of our materials and their application. The health of our participants and employees is always our top priority. As a professional events company with highly vetted policies and processes, we conduct thorough testing to ensure the safety of our materials and their application.

You will see smiling faces along the course whose main goal is to douse you with colourful powder to ensure that you look like you ran through a beautiful rainbow by the time you cross the finish line!

At the Finish Festival, the crowd will be involved in a color throw every 15 minutes to welcome new runners coming in. We provide one bag of color for each runner as you cross the finish line. More packets can be purchased on race day at The Color Run store.

The coloured powder does wash out of your hair; however, we do recommend you take precautions if you are worried! The colour does tend to stick to lighter hair. Blondes you are warned! Oiling your hair before the run will help the colour wash out. If you’re having trouble washing it after the event, bi-carb soda and anti-dandruff shampoo will help get the more stubborn colour out!

The colour mostly washes out after the event. However, as with anything dirty, the sooner the gear gets washed the better. Dust off all excess powder before washing with water. Wash your coloured gear separately and use cold water. We suggest wearing items that you would not mind getting colourful. If you would like to preserve the colour in your running shirt, we suggest spraying it with vinegar and ironing it when you get home. This is the most likely way the shirt will retain its colouring.

We have air-blown color cleaning at the finish line. With a good dusting off, you won’t be 100% clean, but you’ll be good for the drive home. It’s always fun to see people still colorful around town after The Color Run. It’s like a badge of honor!

You went all out, you are covered in colour and if you do not take precautions, your car will be too. If you are driving or taking the tube, use your poncho or bring something (towels, plastic, rubbish bags, etc.) to cover the seats before you sit down.

Our race photographers are totally fine shooting from a medium distance (10-15metres). If you want to get shots right in the midst of the colour we recommend covering cameras/phones with cling film or placing your phone in a ziplock bag.

The coloured powder used at the event is made from food-grade cornstarch. It is 100% natural and causes no harm to skin or the environment. The powder used in its events has been tested for flammability and successfully passed the required EU standards. As with any substance, you want to keep it out of your eyes and our colour throwers make sure to aim low as you pass by. Some Color Runners opt to wear glasses or goggles for their eyes and use a bandana or dust mask for their mouths.

Absolutely! You may want to warn them though they’re not coming out of The Color Run Finish Festival clean!

If an event is held as advertised, we cannot issue refunds. The logistics of setting up and planning the event make it impossible.

You can transfer your place to another participant if you can’t attend.

OR, you can transfer your registration to another event as long as the transfer is within the same calendar year, and you’re transferring from an event that hasn’t yet taken place.

We will have white clothing police inspectors located throughout the event. You will be arrested and put in jail if more than 11.8% of your person is a color other than white just like at Wimbledon, honest!

Just kidding, you can wear whatever you feel comfortable in to run, walk or skip around the 5k course.

It’s totally up to you and your doctor. We see a lot of pregnant runners at our races, and they’re the cutest ones out there!

The powder is all certified non-toxic. We recommend wearing sunglasses or goggles, and a bandana over your mouth and nose in the color zones just for extra protection.

The start chute will open 15 minutes before the run commences. We will then let everyone onto the course in waves of approx. 500-800 every 3-6 minutes. We do suggest any serious runners make their way into the chute early so they can be among the first group to enter the course.

The Color Run is an outdoor event so could be affected by weather! The event will not be cancelled in bad weather unless it is unsafe to proceed. Rain is, after all, just liquid sunshine!

The Color Run is the perfect event to get great visuals for your memories, Instagram, Facebook or maybe you even take your photography more seriously and want to prepare a portfolio. We welcome anyone to photograph or film at our event for PERSONAL use only. We DO NOT accredit anyone other than limited official media. So please, come along, enjoy the event and take shots until your colourful heart is content. Make sure you tag us in any pics! #ColourMeHappy

The Color Run is an American brand that has arrived in the UK so it is missing the Brittish u. We like to encourage all our Color Runners to put the u in colour on the day, and use our UK #ColourMeHappy.

On one condition, if you are prepared to be one of the hippest mums/dads on the planet!

All of our courses are accessible, so everyone can enjoy the ‘Happiest 5K on the Planet!’ We suggest an all-terrain wheelchair or to bring a friend along who will be able to help you through more tricky parts of the course.

Unfortunately, due to safety reasons, the only wheels we allow at our events are prams and wheelchairs. Sorry!

For the safety of our runners and animal friends, we do NOT allow animals at any of our races.

Participants who will be running with children are encouraged to pick up a wristband for their child. You can pick up a wristband at the check-in party and write your name and phone number.

Please email info.uk@thecolorrun.com and we’ll hook you up with an answer. If your question is awesome enough, we might even publish it right here on The Color Run Official FAQs page.